Home Help: Choosing the right wood for a deck

Tuesday

Jul 17, 2018 at 12:01 AM

Tip of the week

Decks: Choose the right wood for the job

Here are some tips from Viance on the best wood for your deck project.

Ground contact wood: As its name implies, ground-contact wood often forms the foundation of your project and may include the support posts placed in or on the ground, in concrete or in fresh water. Ground-contact should be used whenever your wood pieces will be installed less than 6 inches off the ground, such as a ground-level deck.

Above-ground wood: Above-ground wood is the other major designation, and this is the wood type you will use to build the majority of your deck. Above-ground wood uses less preservative chemicals than ground-contact wood while providing added benefits that can repel water, minimize cracking and keep boards straighter.

If the wood will be more than 6 inches from the ground, above-ground wood is the ideal, and most economical type of treated wood to use.

Home health

How to make your home safer

The following tips to keep your home healthy and safe come from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Remove hazards that increase the chance for falling, such as rugs and loose cords.
Check or change the batteries on your carbon monoxide alarm at least twice a year.
Test smoke alarms monthly. Replace alkaline batteries once a year. Replace alarms with lithium batteries every 10 years or sooner if it chirps or stops working.
Keep cooking areas free of flammable objects, such as potholders and towels.
Keep candles, medicine, cleaners and other chemicals out of children's reach, in locked or child-proof cabinets.
Don't use a gasoline or charcoal-burning device near a window, door or vent, or inside your home, basement or garage.
Test your home for radon.
Make your home smoke-free.
Keep medicines in their original bottles or containers.
Energy

Don't suffer high energy bills any longer

The annual energy cost for a typical home in the U.S. is more than $2,000, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Here are some tips from Insulfoam on insulating your attic, basement, crawl space and garage to improve energy efficiency and comfort, while putting money back in your pocket.

Basement and crawl space: Rigid foam insulation boards can be cut to size and installed on basement walls. It is typically much easier to install insulation on the inside wall. Also insulate any crawlspaces.

Garage door: Readily available DIY insulation kits allow homeowners to insulate their garage door in less than an hour, for less than $100.

TVs

Watch where you hang your TV

Apartment Therapy questions the trend of hanging your television over the fireplace in a recent post titled "The home theater mistake we keep seeing over and over again."

Gregory Han points out that there are several reasons to avoid this trend, including:

If the screen is too high, it puts unnecessary stress on neck and shoulder muscles. "The top of the screen should be between 15 and 35 degrees from the horizontal plane of your eye level," the post says.
It may void your television's warranty, in the case of some manufacturers.
It may leave viewers the wrong distance away from the screen for the best viewing angle. A bad viewing angle can affect the "contrast, brightness and color accuracy of the picture," especially with HDTV sets.